* ~ The Eighth Year Universe Series ~ *

PART FOUR

Brave New World

Chapter 56: Family Portrait

A/N: The chapter title is from the song:

Family Portrait by P!nk.

The 'Neville and Lilly are engaged' party, which was well and truly unofficial, turned out to be a lot of fun. Daphne put a curse on Harry, which turned him into a canary every time he touched anything alcoholic. The only problem was, Harry kept forgetting, and everyone took the piss by asking him to pass them their drinks. Teddy found it hilarious, and the makeshift soft play centre went down a treat. Theo, of course, boasted about this and claimed that it was just more proof that he would be an excellent parent.

They had sent Susan a Patronus, and they got a reply a couple of hours later saying, "Congratulations bitches! But I'm in Albania. I'll catch up with you for the goss when I come home!"

It was at this 'party' that Hermione cornered Daphne for some advice.

"Hey, Daphne, what should you do if an ex-boyfriend comes back into your life and you're fairly sure that they are flirting with you?"

Daphne handed Hermione a shot glass, "Down tequila."

Hermione raised an eyebrow at her, "If I do, will you give me some real advice?"

"Maybe."

Hermione rolled her eyes and downed the tequila. She hit the glass down on the table and looked at Daphne pointedly.

"Okay, so you're fairly sure this guy is flirting with you?"

"Yeah, I mean…I'm not very good at noticing that sort of thing," Hermione admitted.

Daphne shook her head, "Seriously?"

"Seriously, what should I do?"

"Who are we even talking about? I didn't think you had any ex-boyfriends apart from Ron."

"Well, I do," Hermione said shortly, "The one that I'm talking about at this particular moment in time is Viktor."

"Viktor?"

"Krum."

"You dated Viktor Krum?"

"Seriously? What were you doing in fourth year? I walked into the bloody Yule Ball with him! We danced. Ron threw a hissy fit and ruined everything, remember?"

Daphne smirked at her, "I was winding you up, Hermione. How can I forget that you went with Krum? I had to listen to Draco insult him for two weeks after that, not to mention all of the tutting and scoffing he did whenever he was in Krum's vicinity. The Yule Ball, the dawn of Draco's love for the Gryffindor Princess, remember?"

Hermione raised an eyebrow, "I always kind of thought you and Theo just said that to wind him up."

"No," Daphne said with a chuckle.

Hermione smiled slightly, "Well, it's not that important, it's just that he's got this new job at the Ministry, and we've bumped into each other a few times."

"And he's flirting with you? Does he know you're engaged?"

Hermione nodded, "I mentioned it the last time, but it didn't seem to phase him."

"Hmm," Daphne hummed suspiciously, "Susan had a brief thing with him, you know? She said he was a dick."

"He always seemed sweet to me," Hermione admitted.

"Hermione, I don't want to call you naïve, but you do always see the best in people, which is admirable but also pretty naïve," Daphne admitted.

"See, this is why I wanted to talk to you about it," Hermione said, "You always tell me the truth, even if it's not the nicest thing to hear."

Daphne shrugged, "Slytherin trait, I guess. Also, I think sugar-coating things is a waste of time. More tequila?"

Hermione raised an eyebrow at her, "Do you think all of us drinking is really a good idea? Sadie's sad that she can't drink, Harry's a recovering alcoholic, and you're responsible for Teddy tonight."

"Sadie will have to learn to deal with it because I am not abstaining from alcohol for the next six months out of solidarity, and Harry's a recovering alcoholic, so when we go home, and I pass out, he can watch Teddy tonight," Daphne joked as she slid the shot glass in Hermione's direction.

"Harsh," Hermione chuckled.

"But fair since Lil and I had to manage on our own last night while those two idiots were in prison."

Hermione snorted, "They were in the brig; it's hardly prison."

"Well, for the sake of dramatics, I'm gonna call it prison anyway," Daphne smirked, "So drink up!"

When Lilly knocked on the door of Cauldwell House, she really hoped that anyone apart from Sadie's mother answered it.

She could have breathed a sigh of relief when Sorenson came to the door, "Hi Sorenson, is Clara in?"

Sorenson nodded, "Yeah, two secs! Clara! Your trainee healer is here!"

He leant against the door frame and asked, "How do you know where we live?"

"Uh…Sadie told me," Lilly answered.

"And why did she tell you?"

"Because I asked her?" Lilly frowned, "And she said you might interrogate me. Do you do this to everyone who comes to your door?"

"Yeah," Sorenson said with a thoughtful nod, "Tied the postman up the other day, and the milkman leaves the bottles by the gate these days."

Lilly took a step back, "Okay…."

Sorenson grinned, "I'm messing with you, Moon."

Clara stepped into the hallway, her dark hair wasn't as perfect as usual, and she looked so out of place in leggings and an oversized hoody of Sorenson's.

"Sorenson, would you stop winding everyone up, you insufferable arse?" Clara asked with an amused grin.

"Sorry, babe."

Clara rolled her eyes, "Hey, Lilly. You must have big news if you're on my doorstep. If you're quitting, I'm going to kill you, and if you're pregnant, I'm going to cry then kill you."

"Not quitting or pregnant," Lilly promised, "But I am engaged!"

Clara smirked, "Told you, Ronnie."

Sorenson rolled his eyes, "You said she'd be engaged by Christmas. You didn't say October."

"Ah well, you Gryffindors are impulsive," She teased, nudging past him and shutting the front door.

Lilly laughed, "He was a Gryffindor?"

"Uh-huh," Clara said, "When did Neville ask you?"

"Yesterday," Lilly grinned, "It was very romantic and emotional."

Clara chuckled, "Well, on the one hand, I'm delighted for you and on the other hand, I'm infuriated because I suppose this means you'll want to stay in England?"

"Yes, more than anything," Lilly admitted.

"You and me both," Clara said with a half-hearted smile, "You'll need to come back for one last week in France. We need to do the paperwork. You'll need to do all the theoretical tests required for you to work at the hospital attached to the training centre. You know what it's like."

Lilly nodded, "Can't you come back to England too?"

"Not just yet, but after Christmas, I think I'll be back for good as well," Clara answered cryptically.

Lilly smiled at that, "Sounds mysterious."

"Let me see the ring then," Clara said, letting a smile slip onto her face.

Lilly smiled and lifted her hand.

"Sapphire for a Ravenclaw?" Clara asked with a raised eyebrow, "A little stereotypical, don't you think?"

"Maybe, but I happen to like sapphires," Lilly said, smirking right back, "I'm going to miss you, Clara."

"I'm going to miss you too, but you will still see me every Friday for simulation," Clara said with a smile.

"And hopefully my boyfriend-"

"Fiancé," Clara corrected.

"That's going to take some getting used to," Lilly admitted sheepishly, "But anyway, hopefully, he won't lose his shit next time."

"I think he's learned his lesson, and I think you have to," Clara said with a sly smile.

"Do I really have to work the graveyard shift on the full moon?"

"Yep."

"Clara!" Lilly complained.

"Payback is a bitch, Lilly," Clara said with an evil smirk as she opened the front door, "See you on Monday!"

"Teddy, bedtime!"

"No!"

Daphne shot Harry a smile, "I know you want to play, sweetheart, but you need to sleep, or you won't have any energy to play tomorrow. Who do you want to take you to bed tonight?"

Teddy looked up from his toy train set, "Umm…Dada!" he yelled while grabbing Daphne's leg.

Harry laughed and picked the little boy up, "Alright, we'll both take you up to bed. It's Muggle storytime tonight, which means we can have Jack and the Beanstalk or The Three Billy Goats Gruff."

"Gruff, gruff, gruff!"

Daphne chuckled as they walked into the little boy's bedroom. She grabbed the book from the shelf and watched Harry put Teddy into his bed. He took the book from her and started reading; it was one of Teddy's favourites.

Daphne stood in the doorway and watched. She smiled when Teddy read along with his favourite bits, and she looked around the bedroom that they had built for him here. He had toys, clothes, and Quidditch memorabilia…he practically already lived here, and Merlin knew he was already in their hearts. Frankly, she couldn't see any reason why they wouldn't adopt him at the end of the trial week.

"Alright, little man. The story is finished, which means…."

"Night, night!"

"Night, night," Harry agreed. He leant down and kissed Teddy on the cheek.

Daphne stepped into the room and leant into the cot to kiss him, "Night night, baby."

"Mumma," Teddy said sleepily.

Daphne smiled softly and turned his night light on. Once they had slipped out of the room and shut the door gently behind themselves, they caught each other's eye.

"Is it just me, or are we really good at this?" Daphne asked warmly.

Harry laughed and wrapped his arms around her, "We're great at it."

Later that night, Harry and Daphne found themselves having a heart to heart in the drawing-room.

"So…"

"So?"

"We're doing this, aren't we?"

Daphne looked down at the final adoption papers on the table, "I think so, yeah."

Harry nodded, "Yeah."

"Any last thoughts before we do the deed?" Daphne joked.

Harry frowned and looked up at the portrait of the Marauders, "Yeah."

Daphne looked at him in surprise, "Okay?"

"The portrait," Harry said, gesturing towards the Marauders who, being the nosy gits that they were, were listening in.

Daphne's frown deepened, but luckily Harry elaborated, "We're going to raise Teddy in this house; officially, he will be our son. He'll grow up in this house calling us Mum and Dad, and all the while, his real dad is going to be right there, immortalised in portrait form. Yes, it's not the real Remus, but he has all of his memories. Teddy has a chance to know his dad, he can talk to him, ask him for advice, but he'll never know his birth mother, and I just feel…uncomfortable about that, I guess."

"So…basically, you feel uncomfortable about raising Teddy in this house because you feel like you would be doing Tonks a disservice?" Daphne asked slowly.

"Pretty much," Harry admitted.

"Okay," Daphne said, "Remus, do you want to tell him that he's an idiot?"

"You are a fuckwit of the highest order!" Sirius called.

Remus smiled, "Sirius, stay out of it. This is about Teddy; it doesn't concern you."

"Woah, woah, woah!" Sirius objected as he walked to the front of the frame, "This is the kid you had with my cousin after you left me for her-"

"I didn't leave you for her; you died," Remus objected.

"Guys!" Lily cut in, "Not this argument again, please."

James nodded, "Yeah, I can't hack much more of the bickering. If you don't shut up, I'm gonna go hang out with my grandad and ask him loads of questions about tanks just to piss him off."

"I heard that, James!" Charlus's voice called from the hall.

Daphne snorted, "Portrait Potters, stop bickering! Remus, tell Harry he's being an idiot."

Remus smiled, "You are being a bit foolish, Harry. I understand where you are coming from, but growing up in a loving family is the best thing for Teddy. If you had the choice of living with Sirius and me and getting to know your father through a portrait, would you take that over growing up with the Dursleys?"

"Ten times over," Harry answered.

Remus smiled, "Then I think you know what you need to do."

Daphne smiled and dipped her quill into the inkpot, then she handed it to Harry.

Harry took it from her and signed on the dotted line. He cast a drying charm on the ink then stepped aside.

Daphne took the quill, dipped it into the inkpot and signed on the dotted line below. She cast a drying charm and took a step back to look at both of their signatures on the pivotal piece of paper.

"I'll take it into the Ministry on my lunch break tomorrow," Daphne said after a moment of silence.

Harry nodded, "We'll let Andi know when we take Teddy back tonight."

"Did you hear him when he was packing earlier?"

Harry nodded, "He didn't want to go."

"I know, it broke my heart," Daphne admitted.

"But, with this getting handed in tomorrow, it's only temporary," Harry said. He grabbed her hand and squeezed it.

"I just hope it all gets finalised quickly," Daphne said.

"I'm sure it will," Harry said optimistically.

"So, when is the wedding?"

Neville rolled his eyes, "Shut up, Theo," he muttered as they got themselves ready for the day after their early morning workout and shower.

"Guessing that means it's going to be a long engagement?" Draco asked.

Neville shrugged, "We haven't discussed a timescale, but I think so, yeah," he said. He was leaning against the wall, fully dressed while he waited for the others to get their arses into gear, "And I'm not going to hang around here waiting for you lot. I, for one, do not want to be late for any classes right now. Sumner and Sheppard are pissed off enough with me."

"Well, if you will declare your love for your Auror partner in a fit of rage," Draco scoffed as he threw on his Auror training uniform.

"Coming from you? Seriously?" Neville remarked.

"Hey, we declare our love for each other in private," Theo joked, slinging his bag over his shoulder, "Jeez Potter, are you still in the shower?"

"No, he's just too paranoid to get dressed in front of us," Neville snorted.

"Years of playing Quidditch Potter," Draco said with a shake of his head, "And you still can't hack communal changing rooms?"

Harry stepped out of the cubicle fully dressed and grabbed his bag, "I wasn't massively paranoid about how I looked during my years of playing Quidditch, because those years were before the war that royally fucked me over."

"Fair play," Theo agreed.

The four of them began their walk back to the main complex, "So seriously, any dates on the cards, Neville?" Draco asked.

"Not right now," Neville admitted, "We did get engaged about six months earlier than I would have planned it, and yes, that was a little bit because I wanted Lilly home but more because of my fit of emotion after simulation on Friday."

"Gryffindors are so impulsive," Theo snorted.

"Coming from the guy who proposed to his girlfriend after like a week?" Harry bit back.

"It was longer than that! It was a couple of months, I mean…at least two months," Theo said as he tried to work out the maths in his head.

Neville sniggered, "The point is that there isn't any rush to plan a wedding."

"Very responsible of you," Harry said with a smile.

"Speaking of weddings, when exactly are you and Daphne tying the knot?" Draco asked.

"Ah, I don't know yet," Harry shrugged, "Once everything settles with Teddy, I guess. Are you and Hermione still in for a long engagement?"

Draco nodded, "Hermione wants a Christmas wedding, so we were thinking next Christmas."

"That's a reasonable time. You will both have been in your jobs for a while," Harry said with a nod.

"That's the plan," Draco remarked.

"So how is this going to work then? Lilly being back?"

"Well, she's going to be working in the trauma centre attached to this building," Neville replied, "And she'll come on our simulation room missions, but unless I get hurt, I won't see her at work apart from that."

"But you will get to wake up with her every morning and go to sleep with her every night," Harry said with a smile, "And that will make all the difference, I expect."

"Exactly."

Draco scoffed, "Gryffindors are such romantics."

"It's disgusting, isn't it?" Theo agreed.

Neville snorted, "I remember you two wooing each other at school after your falling outs. You can shut up about us being romantics."

Harry laughed in agreement, "So when is Lil back then, Nev?"

"Saturday," Neville chirped, "She has to tie up some stuff over in France, do a bunch of tests and paperwork, you know? So this will be her last week, and then she's back over here in an official capacity."

"I wonder how Clara is going to take the news…." Draco mused.

"Oh, she was fine with it," Neville said offhandedly, "I'm more worried about how her mum is going to take the news…."

"Yeah, good luck with that," Harry said, patting Neville on the back.

Daphne was in a great mood on Monday, and she told Bill why. Despite the chat they had had in Shetland, he told her that he was happy for her, and he truly meant it. She warned Bill that she might be late back from her lunch break, depending on how long it took to hand the forms in at the ministry.

As it was, she just had to go in and drop them off with a receptionist. However, it was what she saw and heard on her way out of the ministry that made her late back to work. She was about to head over to an apparition point when she saw Hermione sitting on a bench in a little covered garden outside of the ministry, eating lunch with Viktor Krum.

She knew it was wrong to eavesdrop, but she did it with good intentions. She wanted to make sure that Hermione wasn't accidentally flirting with Viktor and leading him on; it was the kind of thing that Hermione would do after all.

"Thanks for bringing me lunch, Viktor, but you didn't need to do it," Hermione was saying.

"Oh, but I need to know how you became engaged to the boy who made you cry," Viktor said, "You said long story, I have time."

Hermione laughed awkwardly, "Well, during the war, he helped our friends out, so when we all went back to school…he and I became friends. I realised that he was actually a good person, despite all that he had done."

"So you forgived him?"

"I forgave him, yes," Hermione said, "Some people called me stupid and naïve for that, but I don't blame him for anything that happened during the war. I wouldn't be marrying him if I felt any sort of resentment."

Viktor hummed thoughtfully, "I feel he is beneath you."

"He really isn't," Hermione assured him, "He's very good to me, and I love him."

"But he was a bad person to you, and he said horrible things. Nobody should say such horrible things to such a beautiful woman," Viktor said.

Hermione blushed, "Uh…well like I said…I forgave him for that. He had his reasons, and I told you that it was complicated."

"Maybe you need less complicated."

Hermione shook her head, "I like my complicated life with Draco. I'm sorry if that isn't what you want to hear."

Viktor shook his head, "Is okay, if that is how you feel, then I am your friend and nothing more."

"I appreciate that," Hermione said. She smiled at the older man, "And thank you for lunch."

"You are very welcome. I had better get back. I see you around, Hermione."

"See you around, Viktor," Hermione replied.

Less than five minutes after he had left, Daphne had vacated his seat.

"Oh yeah, he was flirting with you."

Hermione jumped out of her skin, "Daphne! What are you doing here?"

"Dropping off adoption papers to your department, actually," Daphne said matter of factly, "I wondered where you were, then I spotted you on my way out. That was blatant flirting; he still has feelings for you."

"I noticed that. Did you eavesdrop on our whole conversation?"

"Just the latter part," Daphne admitted sheepishly, "I wanted to make sure you weren't accidentally flirting with him."

"Was I?"

"No, you were just nice, which is what you do," Daphne said with a shrug, "Some guys think that's flirting, but I think he got the point."

"Good," Hermione sighed, "The last thing I need is an ex pining over me. Could you imagine if Draco found out? He would go on the rampage."

"He is a little…protective, shall we say?" Daphne said with a slight smile, "As annoying as it is, and trust me; I know how annoying it is, it comes from a good place. He's worried that one day you're going to realise that he's a scummy ex-Death Eater and run off with a hero do-gooder."

Hermione chuckled, "Well, he can rest easy. I am not planning on running off with anyone and especially not with Viktor. He's a nice guy, and I would like to stay friends with him, but he's not Draco."

"He's one in a million, Hermione. Just don't tell him that, or his head will get bigger than Harrys!"

When Lilly got home on Saturday, she was in a great mood. She sang along as she unpacked, and she was positively bouncing by the time she and Neville headed around to number 11 Grimmauld Place to see how Sadie was getting on.

When they stepped into the drawing-room, Lilly said, "Guess whose back for good?"

Susan grinned and hugged her tightly, "Congratulations! You're going to have the coolest name when you guys get married."

Lilly laughed, "Am I?"

"Lilly Longbottom, it sounds great," Sadie said with a smile as she hugged her friend, "Much cooler than Sadie Nott."

Theo scoffed, "Cheers, love."

"Personally, I think Daphne Potter has a ring to it," Daphne said with a smirk.

"You would; you wrote it on your notes enough in sixth year."

"Sadie Allegra Nott! That is a lie!"

Harry grinned at his fiancé, and Sadie snorted, "Allegra isn't even my middle name! How many times do I have to tell you that?"

"You need to have a middle name to be a proper pureblood," Daphne said with a grin, "It makes you posh."

"Still, you can't just make up a middle name for me," Sadie said in amusement.

"Also, that's not a thing," Lilly said.

"Yeah, Hermione has a middle name, and she's not a pureblood," Sadie agreed.

"She is posh though," Harry sniggered.

"I'm not that posh!"

"Skiing holidays in the alps? The holiday cottage in the Algarve? Come off it love, you're posh," Draco said with a smirk.

Hermione just rolled her eyes.

Lilly sat down next to Sadie and asked, "So, how are you getting on?"

"I'm doing much better," Sadie admitted, "Down to one bout of sickness a day. I really hope it will go completely soon so I can get back on my feet."

"I'm sure it will," Lilly assured her, "You look so much better than you did when I last saw you."

"Thank you," Sadie said warmly, "I'm going to write a book. Did Harry tell you about that?"

Lilly shook her head, "No, what about?"

"Severus Snape, his whole tragic story," Sadie said with a smile, "Harry gave me a bunch of memories which is a good start. I've owled McGonagall too; I was hoping she would help me with some background on his school years."

"Well, it's an interesting idea," Lilly conceded, "I don't buy into the whole tragic, romantic hero thing, but that's just me."

"What's your opinion?" Sadie asked curiously.

"Creepy stalker who was a bit too obsessed with Harry's mum," Lilly shrugged.

Sadie laughed at that, "Well, we are all entitled to our opinion, I guess."

Lilly smiled, "How are you feeling, mentally? Has it all caught up to you?"

"It's starting to," Sadie admitted, "But I'm doing okay."

"I don't know how you guys do it," Lilly admitted, "You having a baby, and Daphne adopting Teddy. I admire you guys; I definitely couldn't have a baby right now."

"We aren't all cast from the same mould Lil," Sadie said with a smile, "Hermione isn't ready for kids yet either, and you know that this wasn't exactly planned."

"I know," Lilly said. She grabbed Sadie's hand, "But you're going to be a great Mum, Sadie."

"I hope so," Sadie said with a weak smile.

"Theo, do you think it's too early to talk about baby names?"

"Nah, it's never too early to start that argument," Theo joked.

Sadie shot him a mock glare, "How do you know it will be an argument?"

"Because as much as I love you, Sade, I also know you very well, and I know that our tastes are very different," Theo said. He handed her a glass of water.

"Our tastes aren't that different, and I'm not drinking this."

"The Healers said that you had to keep up your fluid intake."

"I don't care. If I drink this, I'll have to get up and pee at least three times tonight," Sadie said. She put the glass down on the table, "We'll go for family names, won't we?"

"Will we? I do not want another Theodore Nott in the family. I'm the ninth one!"

"I meant that a little more broadly," Sadie said with a roll of her eyes, "Like Atticus?"

"For my crazy Uncle, who thought his plants were his children? Nah, I don't think so."

Sadie rolled her eyes, "Okay then smart arse, what names do you like?"

"Nice normal pureblood names, like Phineas."

"Oh, for Daphne's uncle, aka her mother's lover?" Sadie quipped.

"Now who is getting into the name association game?"

Sadie glared at him, "Augustus."

"Too Roman. Tobias?"

"No, that was Snape's middle name. How about Clyde?"

Sadie raised an eyebrow at him, "Like the river in Glasgow?"

"Wow, you are being bitchy about this. Why don't we try some girls names? Maybe we'll agree on those," Theo suggested.

Sadie looked doubtful, but all the same, she said, "How about Tabitha?"

"Too cat-like," Theo said, "I like Penelope."

"It reminds me of a pig," Sadie said.

"What? Why?"

"I don't know, alliteration maybe. I like Harriet."

Theo snorted, "What would we shorten it to, Harry? He'd bloody love that."

"We don't have to shorten it," Sadie said.

"Yes, we do. A kid needs a name that can be shortened; for example, I'm Theo to the people I like and Theodore to the people I want to intimidate."

"You can't shorten my name, but everyone still tries," Sadie said irritably, "I mean Sade, that makes no sense."

"See, it annoys you that your name can't be shortened, so we should name our kid something that can be shortened," Theo said.

Sadie hummed thoughtfully, "I kind of like Elsie for a girl."

"For your Grandma?" Theo asked.

Sadie nodded, "I suppose we could use Elspeth and shorten it.."

"The only family member I would ever consider naming my kid after is my mum," Theo admitted, "Or my Grandfather…."

"Yeah, we're not going to call our kid Thaddeus."

"Too pretentious?" Theo joked.

Sadie shot him an amused glance and said, "We're never going to agree on names, are we?"

"Let's have this conversation again in a few months," Theo suggested evasively.

"Daphne, I need to talk to you."

Daphne looked up in alarm, "I don't like that tone. What have you done?"

"I requested the floo records from around the time of your father's death," Harry said quietly, "And in doing so, I stirred up some suspicion."

"Harry-"

"The Auror is a guy called Finch; I met him when I did my work placement with the Aurors, so he was lenient. He's giving me some time to hand in the letters, but if we don't do it, he'll arrest us both for obstruction of justice," Harry finished quickly.

"That wasn't your place!"

"I know," Harry said. He raised his hands, "I didn't want to talk to you about it until Teddy went back to Andi's, but we need to get that evidence handed in. He gave me an extension with all that happened last week, but he wants the letters by tomorrow."

"Harry!" Daphne snapped, "Honestly, how could you have put us in this position without consulting me first?"

Harry grimaced, "I know, it was stupid, okay? I didn't know how bad it was going to be. The thing is, Daphne, I just wanted to confirm my suspicions, and I did…these are the transcriptions from the floo calls."

Daphne's eyes darkened as she read over the transcripts between her mother and her lover.

"It was all her idea," She said coldly.

Harry nodded, "She needs to be punished."

Daphne swallowed hard and nodded, "Let me talk to Astoria tonight?"

Harry nodded again, "Do you want me to come with you?"

Daphne shook her head, "No, I need to do this alone."

Harry reached out and took her hand, "Hey…I'm sorry."

"It isn't your fault, you were just trying to get the truth for me, and I appreciate that," Daphne caught his eye, "I do, but it still means that I have to tell my sister that we don't have the same father and that our mother is a homicidal maniac so if I seem a bit put out, that's why."

Harry sighed and squeezed her hand, "Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?"

Daphne shook her head, "It's a messy family drama. You don't need to be a part of that. I'll send you a Patronus if I need you."

"Alright," Harry conceded. He let go of her hand and watched her walk out of the room.

Daphne felt sick as she stood on the doorstep of Astoria's apartment. She knew that the conversation they would have tonight was not going to be an easy one; she had been dreading it for years.

The door swung open, and Astoria smiled warmly, "Daph! What are you doing here at this time of night?"

"I need to talk to you Tori, can I come in?"

Astoria nodded and took a step back. Daphne stepped into her sisters home and shut the door behind her with a heavy sigh.

"What's wrong? Is it Teddy? Or is something up with you and Harry?" Astoria asked anxiously.

Daphne shook her head and looked up at her little sister, "Astoria…I have kept something from you for a long time, something…big. I did it to protect you. I didn't want the truth to hurt you, but now it's all going to come out, and I…I need you to hear it from me first."

Astoria frowned, "Daphne, you're scaring me."

Daphne took a shaky breath, "I'm sorry, Tori, but everything you thought about your life, everything we thought about our parents…it's all a lie."

Astoria's frown deepened, "Daphne…what, do you…what do you mean?"

"Our mother is a cold-blooded killer Astoria," Daphne said quietly.

"What?"

"She killed Father, then she turned us against him and made it seem like she was the victim," Daphne said. She couldn't bring herself to meet her sister's eye, "She had Uncle Phineas help her because he was her lover."

"I knew that. It was always obvious," Astoria said offhandedly, "But what idiot convinced you that they were murder-buddies?"

"I've seen floo call transcripts," Daphne whispered, "Between her and Uncle Phineas. They were planning Fathers death for weeks. They wanted him out of the equation so that they could be together."

Astoria swallowed, "Daphne, that makes no sense. Mother and Uncle Phineas fell out of contact after Father died."

"I think that's because Uncle Phineas couldn't live with what he had done," Daphne said, "I don't think he could look at her every day without thinking about what he had done for her."

Astoria shook her head tearfully, "Daphne, this is madness."

"No," Daphne said coolly, "It's the truth, Astoria, and I am taking the evidence to the Ministry first thing tomorrow morning. There is going to be a trial, and I think…I think the truth about you might come out during that trial."

"The truth about me?" Astoria asked incredulously, "What exactly do you think of me exactly? You did just accuse our mother of being a murderer!"

"And a cheater," Daphne said. She looked up and caught Astoria's eye, "She was screwing Uncle Phineas for the majority of our childhood Astoria. Did you never think that she might have been sleeping with him before we were born too? Did you never wonder why you had dark hair when Mother and Father were both blondes? Did you never make the connection between you and your raven-haired Uncle? Because Father did, he knew, and that was why he always favoured me over you. Uncle Phineas knew. That was why he brought you such nice gifts when he travelled the world. Mother sure as hell knew, and I…I found out one night when I was eavesdropping on a conversation between them in France."

Astoria took a step back and stared at her with silent betrayal.

"I'm sorry, Astoria, this wasn't how I wanted to tell you," Daphne said remorsefully, "In fact, I never wanted to tell you but with everything that's going to happen-"

"Get out."

"Astoria-"

"I set, get out," Astoria said coolly.

Daphne opened her mouth to object.

"Now!" Astoria roared, and everything in the apartment shook.

Daphne set her jaw and nodded, "Fine."

She wanted to feel angry at Astoria, but as she walked out of the apartment with tears streaming down her face, all she could feel was sad.

When Daphne swept into Potter Manor with tear-streaked cheeks, Harry instantly pulled her into a hug.

"That bad?"

"She nearly lost control of her magic when she screamed at me to get out," Daphne said quietly.

"You knew that she was going to be angry at first, baby," Harry said gently, "You just told her that her entire life was a lie, and on top of that, you have known for years and haven't told her. I can sympathise with that part. Dumbledore raised me like a pig for slaughter for years and never told me that I existed to kill Voldemort then die."

Daphne sniffled slightly into his shoulder.

"I know that probably doesn't help now," Harry added sheepishly, "But I'm just saying, it sucks being lied to by someone that you love. It will take her time to cool down and come to terms with everything."

"It might take a lifetime."

"Regardless of who her father is, she is your sister," Harry reminded her, "You two will find your way back to each other when the dust settles, I'm sure of it."

Daphne wasn't quite so sure as she sighed heavily into his embrace, "Early start tomorrow then? We'll take this in before work and get it over and done with before your Auror friend arrests us?"

Harry nodded and gripped her tightly, "I can do it, you know, you don't have to come with me."

"She's my mother," Daphne said coldly, "And she killed my father, so I do have to come with you."

"Okay," Harry said softly, "Then yes, it's going to be an early start tomorrow."

* ~ TBC ~ *